HARRISBURG, Penn. - Pennsylvanians who suffer from fall allergies are really feeling the effects this year and, according to the National Wildlife Federation(NWF), the future may only hold more red eyes and runny noses.
Along with the wet and dry conditions that can affect the severity of allergy seasons from year to year, there's a larger factor at work - climate change - according to NWF climate scientist, Dr. Amanda Staudt. She points out that, as we burn fossil fuels, we automatically create more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
"Carbon dioxide is basically a fertilizer for a lot of these plants that produce allergenic pollen."
There's a double whammy in several Pennsylvania cities in which people's asthma is triggered by their allergies. NWF puts Philadelphia, Allentown, Scranton and Pittsburgh in its Top 20 list of "Asthma Capitals" for 2010.
Another byproduct of our fossil fuel consumption is creating conditions that change the way some plants grow, adds Staudt.
"We're allowing some trees to move further north, so places that typically didn't have a lot of allergenic trees like oaks and cedars are going to start seeing more and more of those over the decades."
She predicts says certain areas of the country will especially hard hit if fossil fuel emissions aren't curtailed in, in short order.
"We're going to see increases in allergenic tree pollen across much of the Northeastern United States, the upper Midwest, and the lower Mississippi Valley."
The NWF estimates that ragweed pollen, which hits most allergy sufferers hardest, results in roughly $700 million in lost productivity nationwide, each year.
Along with the wet and dry conditions that can affect the severity of allergy seasons from year to year, there's a larger factor at work - climate change - according to NWF climate scientist, Dr. Amanda Staudt. She points out that, as we burn fossil fuels, we automatically create more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
"Carbon dioxide is basically a fertilizer for a lot of these plants that produce allergenic pollen."
There's a double whammy in several Pennsylvania cities in which people's asthma is triggered by their allergies. NWF puts Philadelphia, Allentown, Scranton and Pittsburgh in its Top 20 list of "Asthma Capitals" for 2010.
Another byproduct of our fossil fuel consumption is creating conditions that change the way some plants grow, adds Staudt.
"We're allowing some trees to move further north, so places that typically didn't have a lot of allergenic trees like oaks and cedars are going to start seeing more and more of those over the decades."
She predicts says certain areas of the country will especially hard hit if fossil fuel emissions aren't curtailed in, in short order.
"We're going to see increases in allergenic tree pollen across much of the Northeastern United States, the upper Midwest, and the lower Mississippi Valley."
The NWF estimates that ragweed pollen, which hits most allergy sufferers hardest, results in roughly $700 million in lost productivity nationwide, each year.
No comments:
Post a Comment